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Fri, 09 Dec 2016 21:03:48 -0600Joomla! - Open Source Content Managementen-gbThe Complete Jack Johnson Sessions by Miles Davishttp://jazzreview.com/cd-reviews/fusion-cd-reviews/the-complete-jack-johnson-sessions-by-miles-davis.html
http://jazzreview.com/cd-reviews/fusion-cd-reviews/the-complete-jack-johnson-sessions-by-miles-davis.htmlTwo months before Miles Davis went into the studio to record the music in this set, he claimed he "could put together the greatest rock ‘n roll band you ever heard." A r…

Two months before Miles Davis went into the studio to record the music in this set, he claimed he "could put together the greatest rock ‘n roll band you ever heard." A retrospective listen to The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions shows he may have not been far from the truth.

Recorded in New York City during the spring of 1970, this music was put down only six months after the sessions that produced Bitches Brew. Where In A Silent Way had an ambient modal feel and Bitches Brew a cosmic layered sound, A Tribute to Jack Johnson was Miles with a smaller, leaner, more explosive electric group. A little under half of the recordings on this set were done with five instruments: electric guitar, electric bass, drums, soprano sax and trumpet. Miles was looking for a raw rocking sound and John McLaughlin’s guitar plays prominently throughout the music. On other songs the group swells to as many as nine, but the foundation of the sound is always heavy bass and chomping guitar.

In some respects the set is copious (even the biggest fan would find six versions of Willie Nelson a bit overdone), but the four and a half hours of previously-unreleased music hold so many highlights that the shortcomings of the set become negligible. There is Miles playing the blues alone for ten minutes, held only by the slow unobtrusive guitar of McLaughlin on "Go Ahead John." There is the fat swaggering bass line and guitar interplay of "Ali" with Miles coolly soloing over the top. And there is the loose stop-and-go barrel-house rock sound of "Honky Tonk."

The musicians on these sessions are an all-star cast of Davis’ cohorts at the time: Steve Grossman on soprano sax, Chick Corea and Herbie Hancock on electric piano and organ, drummer Jack DeJohnette, bassist Dave Holland, percussionist Airto Moreira and others. The set also sees the addition of two key members to Miles’ circle: electric bassist Michael Henderson and pianist Keith Jarrett. Henderson would play with Miles until his retirement in 1974 and Jarrett would later contribute to live recordings at the Fillmore and the Cellar Door in Washington, D.C. The set also includes Wayne Shorter’s last recordings with Miles before leaving to form Weather Report.

The set comes with complete sessionography, rare black and white photos of all the musicians, two essays, and a discography of the albums that include music from these recordings. Like the other box sets in this Columbia/Legacy series The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions gives the definitive look at a period of Miles’ rapid musical change in the late 60s and early 70s.

]]>morrice.blackwell@gmail.com (Eli Pedelty)Fusion - CD ReviewsMon, 15 Dec 2003 18:00:00 -0600Everybody Digs Bill Evans by Bill Evanshttp://jazzreview.com/cd-reviews/straight-ahead-classic-cd-reviews/everybody-digs-bill-evans-by-bill-evans.html
http://jazzreview.com/cd-reviews/straight-ahead-classic-cd-reviews/everybody-digs-bill-evans-by-bill-evans.htmlSeven weeks before recording with Miles Davis on Kind of Blue, Bill Evans went into the studio with a trio of his own to record an album. Accompanied by Sam Jones on bas…

Seven weeks before recording with Miles Davis on Kind of Blue, Bill Evans went into the studio with a trio of his own to record an album. Accompanied by Sam Jones on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums, the music was recorded in one mid-December afternoon. Only his second album, Everybody Digs Bill Evans revealed the intelligent, emotional and understated style that became Evans’ definitive sound; today it remains a quiet milestone of modal jazz.

Evans first album, recorded in 1956, had been a display of technical playing that had left him unsatisfied. In the recording heavy atmosphere of New York City, he decided to wait two years before trying again under his own name. This second time, on Everybody Digs, pieces like "Minority" and "Oleo" recall, in a very positive way, the fiery technique from his first album. They are crisp, impeccably played and they swing deep. Philly Joe Jones introduces Cole Porter’s "Night and Day" playing on the rims of his trap set and Evans needs no prodding once he starts playing.

Yet Evans’ new control of the piano becomes most obvious in the way he transforms a song like "Young and Foolish" from a hackneyed ballad into a beautiful ebbing piece. His hesitation, light touch, and rich chordal voicings give the song a subtle and suspended feeling. Other ballads like "Lucky to Be Me," "What is There to Say" and "Tenderly" are similar with their natural warm sound. His self-written piano solo, "Peace Piece," with its slowly striding left hand is ethereal and calming music. For all of its technical grace, this album is defined by the original emotion of its ballads. Evans’ sound is slightly classical and at the same time, pure improvisational jazz.

Critical of even the finest musicians, Miles Davis once admitted that he "loved to hear [Bill] play." Saying, "I would call Bill up and tell him to take the phone off the hook; just leave it off and play for me." Evans’ enveloping sound on this album deserves such a compliment. It is at the same time strong and fragile, straightforward and elusive. It is a pleasure to hear and rehear and proof of Evans’ prominent place in the history of jazz.

]]>morrice.blackwell@gmail.com (Eli Pedelty)Straight-Ahead - CD ReviewsWed, 09 Jan 1991 18:00:00 -0600Super-Sonic Jazz by Sun Rahttp://jazzreview.com/cd-reviews/big-band-swing-cd-reviews/super-sonic-jazz-by-sun-ra.html
http://jazzreview.com/cd-reviews/big-band-swing-cd-reviews/super-sonic-jazz-by-sun-ra.htmlIt may be difficult to take an album seriously when it has a pink hand-drawn cover. It may also be difficult when the liner notes declare, "21st Century Limited Edition …

It may be difficult to take an album seriously when it has a pink hand-drawn cover. It may also be difficult when the liner notes declare, "21st Century Limited Edition by LE SUN RA and his Arkestra." Yet, very few albums should be taken as seriously as Super-Sonic Jazz. In spite of the packaging’s nonchalant goofiness, Sun Ra’s 1956 effort is one of the finest unknown records in jazz.

Sun Ra’s relative obscurity among jazz listeners has always been a mystery. He was often musically ahead of his time but had a habit of drawing attention for non-musical reasons. He claimed that he came from the planet Saturn and would often wear elaborate costumes during his concerts. In spite of this behavior, constant iconoclastic portrayals of Ra seem to miss the most important point: he was a musician of the highest order. His big band writing was a hybrid of Ellington-like harmonic lines, Basie-like driving swing, and Mingus-like exuberance. Although he is best known for his free-sounding jazz arrangements in the 1960’s, Ra was steeped deeply in the tradition of big band music. This album displays that influence in full tilt.

One of the biggest pleasures of Super-Sonic Jazz is the diversity of music. "India" is a walking oriental groove. "Kingdom of Not" is a medium-tempo blues with hand-claps and sax lines making the chorus. "Super Blonde" holds tight while sounding freer and looser than other swing music of the period. There is also the beautiful ballad-playing of Ra and alto saxophonist James Scales on "Springtime in Chicago." Most of the album has Ra on acoustic piano and the music is infused by the unique swing of his twelve-man group.

Surprisingly, Super-Sonic Jazz also has a dose of electric piano. "India" starts with Ra’s droning modal sound on the instrument. In the slow blues of "Sunology," he solos on acoustic piano and then switches to electric piano while subtly continuing to play chords on the acoustic. On "Advice to Medics," he improvises alone for two minutes using only the electric piano. Ra plays so well that the novelty of the instrument is lost in his hands, even in 1956. Always the innovator, his use of electric piano predated Cannonball Adderley’s use by eight years and Miles Davis’ electric music by twelve years.

"El is a Sound of Joy" might be the most touching and diverse song on the album. It starts with a tympani roll, then becomes a beautiful harmonic line played by the sax section which in turn becomes a swinging baritone sax riff by Pat Patrick. Patrick solos while Ra comps behind him in time, then out of time and then back in time again. Throughout the album, the musicians play with an inspiring combination of individuality and single-mindedness.

Sun Ra’s Arkestra existed from its formation in 1955 until his death in 1993. The range and variety of music played by that group was enormous. For listeners new to Ra’s music and the breadth of his travels, there might not be a better place to start than Super-Sonic Jazz.

For people lucky enough to still hear Ra for the first time, go listen. Fifty years after their creation, the sounds on this album are still waiting to be discovered. Super-Sonic Jazz is living and intelligent big band music.